April 2024

Dear Friends of First,

Did you know that First Lutheran has a mission statement and a vision statement? Are you able to recite them from memory? Do you know where you could find them posted in the church building? A lot of churches have these statements. You see them on bulletin boards or newsletters. But just having these statements posted around the church or on newsletters makes little difference if the congregation isn’t living up to them. By that I mean allowing the statement to guide all the decisions every step of the way. For example, take Jesus’ commanding words, “Go make disciples.” Someone whose primary mission in life is to transform people and/or society will interpret the words to mean, “Go make as many new converts as possible.” Living into your mission statement means that you allow it to drive everything you do.

This is equally important with a vision statement. A vision statement gets a congregation to seek God’s program and redirects a congregation from their own program. God already has a plan for the congregation that gathers in the name of Jesus. God is not confused about where the church should go in the next 3-5 years. The problem comes when you don’t take time to seek God and discover God’s plan. Most churches are too busy maintaining daily congregational life and church work. Prayer often goes out the window first. Yet, it is a vital component in discovering God’s vision for the Lord’s church. In Jeremiah 33:3, the Lord said, “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”

Prayer alone is not enough, though. It also takes work on our part. As followers of Jesus, we are always in constant tension between: “Is it our responsibility to let God reveal God’s future to us and to see the future as God sees it?” A church that fails to listen for God’s vision will not experience all that God has planned for it. We have a tendency to let the budget confine us, or a crisis or a pastoral change drive our plans when, in fact, God wants to reveal a future that will excite and challenge us. But this takes prayerful listening and work.

We have invited Marie Leafblad, Associate to the Bishop, to join us on

Sunday, April 14th for worship and brunch where Marie will facilitate a discussion on this very topic. The topic question is: does our mission and vision statement still speak and point to the direction of God’s plan for today and for the future? Please plan to attend worship on Sunday, April 14th at 9am followed by a congregational brunch, and a discussion led by Marie Leafblad.

In Christ,
Pastor Jim